Many Carlsbad residents are still recovering from a huge meal on Thanksgiving Day. The holiday was extra special for a few local families, who celebrated Thanksgiving together for the very first time.
On Monday, Carlsbad held a ceremony in honor of National Adoption Day. Two families made their adoption official, including one family who adopted two children at once. Thank you to Judge Shane Shuler Gray and the local Children Youth and Families Department for holding this ceremony. Judge Shuler Gray has always been a very dedicated supporter of the adoption process. Special thanks to County Office Manager Maria Calderon, Leandra Berdoza, placement supervisor, and April Barnwell, the adoptive parent who spoke at this year’s ceremony.
According to information provided by CYFD, more than 117,470 children in the United States foster care system are waiting to be adopted and about 20,000 children age out of foster care systems without being adopted every single year.
Here in New Mexico, more than 2,120 children are waiting for permanent families and there are about 26 kids in Eddy County waiting to be adopted.
The Annual Adoption Day ceremony at the Eddy County is a great opportunity to celebrate the gift that the adoption process brings to both families and the children who are joining the home. It’s also a chance to thank CYFD, the courts and other organizations for all of their hard work with assisting with adoptions. Nov. 21, 2022, was a great day in Carlsbad.
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We had a great meeting with the United Way of Eddy County this week and enjoyed listening to updates about all that the organization is doing in our community, in particular with food assistance.
Recently, the United Way led the “MTD Radio Holiday Food Fight” between Carlsbad, Hobs and Roswell. This effort raised a large trailer full of food here. The United Way is working closely with Terri Judah’s wonderful Operation Hope Thanksgiving Food Drive, which provides Thanksgiving meals to local families in need. The organization also supports Abundant Harvest and Jonah’s House.
Please encourage families in need to participate in the United Way’s Holiday Food Assistance Registration. Distribution will be Dec. 3 in Loving and Dec. 10 in Carlsbad, as well as Dec. 16 in Artesia. A registration link is available online. The United Way also offers drive-thru food distribution the second Friday of every month at 10 a.m. at Epworth United Methodist Church on Blodgett Street.
The United Way plays a very important role in our community in that the organization brings together multiple agencies to make sure issues such as hunger and homelessness are being addressed. We look forward to working with executive director Maria Cole, Outreach Manager Jamie Rose, and the United Way board in the future.
Sincerely,
Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway